Smokey Is Steaming After Loss

Well down the hallway from San Diego State’s locker room, Coach Smokey Gaines’ Thursday night tirade could be heard.

What he had to say to his players was not pretty, but neither was SDSU’s 75-72 loss to a Colorado State team that had lost four straight.

Among other things, Gaines questioned why his team seemingly gave up and whether it had heart or cared about winning.

There’s no question he had several good points.

Gaines was particularly upset that the Aztecs could not put the Rams away after leading, 47-39, with 14:38 remaining.

Why they couldn’t is a question that SDSU simply never seems to be able to answer on the road. The Aztecs are 5-4 in the Western Athletic Conference, having won every home game and lost every road game.

There were more questions that needed answers after Thursday’s game. In particular, one must wonder why SDSU never seems to take a high-percentage shot when the game is on the line.

Two weeks ago, Creon Dorsey was fortunate enough to beat Texas El Paso with a 23-footer in the final seconds. He wasn’t so fortunate on a 22-footer against Colorado State with eight seconds remaining.

The Aztecs had called timeout with 19 seconds remaining and trailing, 74-72. Gaines said the plan was to get the ball inside to Steffond Johnson or John Martens, but the ball never came close to the inside.

One could also question why Dorsey was taking the shot in the first place. He had missed his only other shot of the game and had been sitting on the bench for several minutes before SDSU called timeout.

“I came in cold and didn’t want to force a shot,” Dorsey said. “They were watching Steffond Johnson and John Martens pretty well inside. I heard guys on the bench telling me to shoot because the clock was going down. It wasn’t a good shot. If it falls, fine. Iif not, you hurt about it. I’m hurting right now.”

Losing hurt any chance the Aztecs had of winning the WAC championship. They fell into fifth place, 1 1/2 games behind co-leaders UTEP and Brigham Young. Colorado State, which had lost to the Aztecs in San Diego, 72-56, improved its WAC record to 4-5.

After the Rams fell behind by eight points early in the second half, they scored six straight to cut the margin to two. SDSU eventually pulled to a seven-point lead, 57-50, on Johnson’s basket with 9:45 remaining.

“We just didn’t play smart with a lead,” a subdued Gaines said. “On the road, you have to play smart and we didn’t. Our shot selection left something to be desired.”

SDSU folded down the stretch, just as it did at Utah when it could not hold a six-point lead with four minutes remaining.

When SDSU led, 70-69, Bobby Owens scored an apparent basket for the Aztecs that was nullified when he was called for charging. Rich Strong put Colorado State ahead for good, 71-70, on an eight-footer with 1:31 remaining.

Johnson missed a 14-footer on SDSU’s ensuing possession and Dorsey grabbed the rebound. Dorsey then threw a pass to Johnson that became a loose ball, ending with Dorsey fouling John Dudley of Colorado State.

Dudley hit his first free throw with 51 seconds remaining, giving Colorado State a 72-70 lead. When Dudley missed his second, Strong grabbed the rebound over Johnson. Strong then hit two free throws with 39 seconds remaining and the Rams led, 74-70.

SDSU’s Anthony Watson led all scorers with 31 points, giving him 95 points in the last three games. Johnson scored 13 points and tied Kevin Brown for the team-high with 9 rebounds. However, Strong was the dominant center with 17 points and 13 rebounds.

Afterward in the locker room, Gaines directed some not so glowing comments toward Johnson.

“I’ve seen him more upset than that,” Dorsey said. “He was real upset with me at Utah. It hurts at times, but you have to keep on playing.”

The Aztecs conclude a two-game trip at the Air Force Academy at 6:35 tonight in Colorado Springs.